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The Atmotic Ship was an experimental steam-powered airship designed in 1851 by Australian physician and member of parliament William Bland. No prototype was ever constructed.
Bland was a naval surgeon by profession who was transported to Australia as a convict after murdering a ship's purser in a duel. [1]
According to Bland, the idea for the Atmotic Ship came to him in March 1851. [2] He may have been inspired by reports on ballooning carried in The Sydney Morning Herald , which drew attention to the problem of managing ascents and descents and navigating through the air. Additionally, he had previously corresponded with Francis Forbes, the son of Chief Justice Sir Francis Forbes, who had in 1843 put forward a proposal for an "aerial carriage" based on a steam-powered kite. [3]
Bland sought to put forward a solution to the problem of managing ascents and descents that did not require releasing gas or jettisoning ballast. He proposed that the gondola or "car" be fitted with "sliding ballast", which the operator would move to the front, back or centre of the airship to effect an ascent or descent. [3]
In June 1859, Bland gave an address to the Royal Society of New South Wales titled "On Atmotic Navigation", which was one of the first lectures on aviation in Australia. [4]
Bland continued to lobby for the Ship to be trialled up until his death in 1868. He wrote letters to U.S. President Abraham Lincoln, King Victor Emmanuel II of Italy, and Tsar Alexander II of Russia, and proposed to the Colonial Office that the first Ship to be constructed should be named in honour of Queen Victoria. In 1866, Bland sent copies of his pamphlet to George Campbell, 8th Duke of Argyll, the president of the newly formed Aeronautical Society of Great Britain, requesting that the Ship be given a trial. The Duke of Argyll declined on the grounds that he believed aerial navigation would only be possible with a flying machine that was heavier than air, noting that no "flying animal is lighter than air". [5] The following year, Bland was finally granted a patent for his fire suppression device. He proposed that the patent be sold and the future rights to the patent for the Atmotic Ship be sold for £2,000 (equivalent to $160,000in 2022). [6]
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